Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1887-06-30
KING
Solomon S Mines,
By II. RIDER HAGGARD.
CHAPTER XVI.
THE PLACE OF DEATH.


mountains were called TO VIII C Solomon's
Great Road ran Gu. party consist of our
three Sc yes and Fou a,a. wlo waited on us
especially on G3od-I .ifld :os. Gagool
who was borne along IN liter. inside
which she could be hea" mutt.rng and
cursing all day long, and ;, party of guards
and attendants.
/ had better leave the feelings CT intense
excitement with which we set out ON our
march that morning to the Imagination of
those who read this history. At last we
were drawing near to the wonderful mines
that had been the cause Of the miserable
death Of the old Portuguese don, three CELL
turtles ago, of my poor FRIEND his il-starred
descendant, and also, as we feared of George
Curtis, Sir Henry's brother. Were we des-
tined, after all that we had gone through, TO
fare any better? Evil befell them: as that
old fiend Gagool said, would also befall us?
Somehow. as we were march ne UP that last
stretch Of beautiful road, ] could not help
feeling little superstition about the mat
ter, and so | think did God and Sir Henry.
For an hour and Il If or more we
tramped on up the heatber-fringed road,
going so fast in our excitement that the
bearers with GagooPs hammock could
scarcely keep pace with rs, and its occu-
pant piped out to us to stop.
go more slowly, white men," she said,
projecting her hideous shriveled counten-
ance between the curtains, and fixing her
cleaning eyes upon rs; ''why will We run
to meet the evil that shall befall We, ye
seekers after treasurer and she laughed
that horrible laugh which always sent q
cold SILVER down my back, and which for a
while quite took the enthusiasm out of us.
However on we went till we saw before
us, and between ourselves and the peak,
vast circular hole with so9ing sid three
hundred feet or more in depth, and quite
half mile roand.
Cant you guess Taat this s9' | said to
Sir Henry and Good, who were staring in
establishment down into the awful pit be-
fore Us.
They shook their heads.
'Then it is clear that you have never
seen the diamond mines at Kimberley. You
may depend on it that this is Solomon's
Diamond Mine; look there" | said point
ing to the stiff, blue C ay which was yet TO
be seen among the grass and bushes which
clothed the sides Of the pit. 1.-The formation
is the same. III be bound that if we went
down there we should fad pipes of soapy
brecciated rock. Look. too" and | pointed
10 a series Of worn fat slabs OF rock which
were placed on a gentle slope below the
level of water-course Which had in some
past age been cut out of the solid rock; IF
those are not tables once used TO wash the
stuff I'm Dutchman."
At the edge of this vast hoe, which was
the pit marked on the old don'S map, the
great road hranchel into two and circum-
vented it. In many pIaceo Gnl, UIIcunI , o..t,
ing road was built entirely of vast blocks of
stone, apparently with the object of sup
porting the edges of the pit and preventing
falls of reef. Along this roasl we pressed,
driven by curiosity to see hat the three
towering objects We're which we could dis
Germ from the hither side of the great hole
As we got nearer we perceived that they
were colossi Of some sort or another, and
rightly conjectured that these were the three
''Sient Ones that were held III such awe
by the Kukuana people. But it was not un
til we got quite close that we recognized the
full majesty of these Silent Ones"
There, upon hu,e pedestals of dark rock
scu'pt,ued in unknown characters, twenty
PAGES between each, and looking down the
road viii Ii crossed some sixty miles of
plain TO Loo were three coloss u seated
formS-tWo male and one fema e act
measuring about twenty feet from the
crown of the head to the pedestal
3 fore we had finished examining these
extraordinary relics Of remote antiquity, In
fadoaS clmA up 3n |. having tlnfetl the
Silent Ones" by lifting Ii spear, asked us
if we intended entering the '.I'iace OF
Death at once, or if we would wait till af-
ter we had taken food at midday. If we
We're ready to 70 at once, Gl :, OF had am
nounced her Willingness to guide us. As ii
was not more than eleven o'clock, We
driven to it by a burning cur.osity-an-
nounced our intention of proceeding al
nee, and | suggested that, in cas- we
should be detaip ad in the cave, we should
take some food with us. Accordingly Ga
goofs litter was broaght up and that lady
herself assisted out of it; and meanwhile
Foulata, at my request, stored some ''bil-
tong" or dried game-h ssh together with a
couple of gourdS of water in a reed basket
Straight in front of LIS, at a distance of some
hfty PAGES from the backs of the coloSsi,
rose sheer wall of rock, eighty feet or
more in height, that gradually sloped up till
IL formed the base of the lofty snow
Wfeathed peak, which scared up into the
air three thousand feet above us AS soon
as she was clear of her hammock, Gagool
cast one evil grin upon us, and then. lean
ing on stick, hobbled off toward the sheer
face of the rock. We followed her till we
came to 4 narrow portal soidly arched,
that looked like the opening of gallery of
mine.
Here Gagool was waiting for MS. still with
that evil grin upon her horrid face
Now, White men from the stars" she
piped; great Warriors Incubu, Bougwan.
and Macumazlhn the wise, are We ready?
Behold, am here to do the bidding of my
lord the king, and to Show We the store of
bright stones.'
I'VE are ready | said.
Good good! Make strong your hearts 10
bear what We shall see. CONTEST thou too,
infadaos, who betrayed thy mast r:.s'
lnfadoos frowned as he answere,
Nay, | come not, it is not fer Dle to en-
ter there. But thou Gagool, curb thy
tongue, and beware how thou dealest with
my Lords. At thy hands will l require them
and il hair OF them be hurt, Gagool, be
thou fifty times Witch, thou shalt die.
dearest thou9'
L hear, lnfadoos; | know thee, thou
didst ever love big words; when thou was,
a babe remember thou didst threaten thine
own mother. That was but the other dav.